Gas sensor and its method of manufacture

A gas sensor comprising:

• a. an electrode formed on a gas porous membrane;
• b. a housing containing a reservoir, wherein when in use, the reservoir contains a liquid electrolyte for contacting the electrode;
• c. an electrical contact, configured to make an external connection from the gas sensor;
• d. a conductive material disposed between the electrode and the electrical contact;
• and
• e. a wick being arranged to contact both the liquid electrolyte and the electrode, the wick having at least one aperture formed therein through which the conductive material can be introduced,
• wherein at least a portion of the electrode and a portion of the gas porous membrane substantially adjacent thereto, are impregnated with the conductive material, the conductive material forming an electrical pathway through the gas porous membrane which connects at least the electrode to the electrical contact.

A method of forming an electrical pathway across a microporous membrane having first and second major surfaces, where the microporous membrane is impervious to liquid and permeable to gas, comprising the steps of:

• a.) maintaining sufficient heat to melt a conductive material;
• b.) urging the melted conductive material through pores of the microporous membrane at a first surface by establishing a pressure differential across the first and second surfaces;
• c.) controlling the heat and pressure differential until the melted conductive material emerges at the second surface;
• and
• d.) allowing the material to cool so as to form a continuous, electrically conductive pathway from the first surface to the second surface while preserving the liquid impermeability and gas permeability characteristics of the microporous membrane.